Hwang Hee-chan


Hwang Hee-chan is a South Korean professional footballer who plays as a forward for Bundesliga club RB Leipzig and the South Korea national team. He is nicknamed the "Bull" in South Korea due to his aggressive playing style and surname.

Early life

Hwang Hee-chan was born in Chuncheon, but his entire family moved to Bucheon right after his birth. They lived there until he was eleven years old. He started to play football in Singok Elementary School in Uijeongbu, South Korea. In 2008, he scored the most goals in both Hwarangdaegi Tournament and Dongwon Youth Cup, which were South Korean national youth competitions. His performance also continued in South Korean national under-12 team. He scored 22 goals in Kanga Cup, which was the highest record in history of Kanga Cup. With outstanding performances in these competitions, he was awarded the grand prize of the Cha Bum-kun Football Award, being given to the greatest youth footballers in South Korea.
After graduating from Singok Elementary School, he started to play in the football club of Pohang Jecheol Middle School, which is the Pohang Steelers under-15 team. In 2011, Pohang Jecheol Middle School won the middle school division of the Korean National School League, hosted by Korean FA, and Hwang received the MVP award of the competition.
Subsequently, he joined Pohang Jecheol High School and the Pohang Steelers under-18 team. In the 2013 K League Junior, contested between youth teams of K League clubs, he scored 12 goals in 12 games for his team, helping his high school win the league. In the following high school division of the National School League, Pohang won the championship, and he became the top scorer and the MVP of the competition.

Club career

In December 2014, Pohang Steelers intended to sign forward Hwang Hee-chan as a homegrown player, however he signed with an Austrian club Red Bull Salzburg eventually. On 3 November 2016, Hwang came off the bench and scored a brace in a Europa League match for Salzburg against Ligue 1 side Nice, contributing to his team's first Europa win of the campaign.
During the 2017–18 season Salzburg had their best ever European campaign. They finished top of their Europa League group, for a record fourth time, before beating Real Sociedad and Borussia Dortmund thus making their first-ever appearance in the quarter-finals of UEFA Europa League. On April 12, Hwang scored a goal against Lazio leading 4-1 victory to proceed to the semi-finals. On 3 May 2018, Hwang played in the second away match of the semi-final, when Salzburg defeated Marseille by 1–2 but lost on aggregate 3–2. On 31 August 2018, Hwang joined Hamburger SV on a loan deal until the end of 2018–19 season.
During the 2019–20 season, Hwang drew plaudits alongside Salzburg's attacking players Erling Haaland and Takumi Minamino. The trio were particularly praised for their exploits in the Champions League, where Hwang was involved in eight goals by recording three goals and three assists, and winning two penalty kicks. Hwang's playing style has been described as energetic with accurate passing and an eye for dribbling. In all competitions, Hwang had a remarkable season scoring 16 goals and providing 22 assists in 40 appearances.
On July 8, 2020, Hwang signed for RB Leipzig on a five-year contract.

International career

In 2012 AFC U-16 Championship, he scored a hat-trick against North Korea. South Korea was eliminated in the quarter-finals, but he became top scorer of the tournament with five goals.
Hwang participated in the 2016 Summer Olympics and scored a goal in a group match against Germany, which finished as a 3–3 draw. In a friendly on 28 March 2018, Hwang scored Korea's second goal against Poland, with the match ending in a 3–2 loss. In May 2018, he was named in South Korea's preliminary 28 man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. He played in all three group matches of the World Cup.

Career statistics

Club

International

International goals

NoDateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.13 June 2017Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar2–22–32018 FIFA World Cup qualification
2.27 March 2018Silesian Stadium, Chorzów, Poland2–22–3Friendly
3.22 January 2019Rashid Stadium, Dubai, United Arab Emirates1–02–1 2019 AFC Asian Cup
4.10 October 2019Hwaseong Stadium, Hwaseong, South Korea3–08–02022 FIFA World Cup qualification

Honours

Red Bull Salzburg
South Korea U23
Individual